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KJ

KJ

El Capitan
Joined
Dec 2, 2010
Messages
907
Location
USA
Vessel Name
Avalon
Vessel Make
Chung Hwa 46 LRC
Do you close all your seacocks every time you leave your boat? KJ
 
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No...but my seacocks, clamps and hoses are only 2 years old....I got rid of 5 seacocks and now just have 4.....

Even IF a hose totally separated from the seacock...it would take many hours before it became critical and started covering any significant system.... because even 1/2 my bilge pumping capacity would slow the accumulation down to several hundred gallons an hour. My boat could easily take on 1000 gallons before I would be really nervous.

I usually worry more about forgetting to turn the fresh water off than the seacocks/hoses.
 
It's a good idea to close the, it keeps the operating smoothly and you always know the work. I always close them off when I leave, naturally if I leave the sir com on I leave that one open.
 
No. None.
 
I understood common practice is: sailboats do, powerboats don`t. For me:
Short time absence, going ashore, boat hopping etc, no.
Prolonged absence, yes, definitely, all closed.
 
I always close the three below the water line but the half dozen or so drains just above the line, no.
 
I always close all five seacocks when I leave the boat and "go home"

If I leave the boat to just go ashore, wether anchored or docked I do not close the seacocks.

I suppose that "going home" really means that I'll be off the boat overnight or longer.

When I close the seacocks I put a piece of paper with a "closed seacocks" notice on the helm with the ignition keys poking through the paper, and a similar note at the generator control. Each note has the date the seacocks were closed.
 
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No vote here. I exercise them prior to every outing though as part of my engine check.
 
I close mine whenever I leave overnight and tag the keys.

One question though. I don't have seacocks on my above water thruhulls. It sounds like others do. Is that to guard against the possibility of additional leakage if the the vessel takes on water and submerges the higher thruhulls? Or is there another risk?
 
I close the three below the waterline when we leave the boat at the berth, but not while we are out. However, the engine intake sea cock is right beside the engine, and hard to reach anyway, without lifting floor and hunkering beside a hot engine. So, I set up a handle extension, and linked a long metal rod to the end of the extended handle forward, with a knob on it, so I can reach it from the forward engine room hatch, which is easy to get to. However, every now and then the damn handle works it's way off the seacock, always when it's the end of a days run, and if that happens I just say bugger it, I'm not getting in there next to the hot engine to turn it off...it'll keep until I'm back down there when the engine is cold. If your hoses and clips are good, it's no big deal, really. It's mainly an insurance thing.
 
YES. The only ones open are above the water line and for the bilge pumps. We only hane two below tbe water line for the engines.
 
If we are staying on the boat they are open, when we leave the boat they are closed.
 
No. I do exercise them periodically, but they remain open at all times unless I'm performing maintenance that requires them closed. When they're closed, I place a prominent flag on the keys alerting me that they are closed.
 
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Most of mine are usually kept open except for the black-water outlet.

img_171686_0_0409a67c554a542389f2812c1b9f43c4.jpg
 
Oh ya...forgot about that one. It remains closed and secured at all times. The hand pump deteriorated years ago. Being nin the bay/delta area, I see no reason to repair it or replace it with a macerator pump.

I like the locking collar on your seacock, Mark. Nice touch.
 
FlyWright said:
No. I do exercise them periodically, but they remain open at all times unless I'm performing maintenance that requires them closed. When they're closed, I place a prominent flag on the keys alerting me that they are closed.
Click to expand...
We know your background. :) We hang the keys on the engine thru hull when closed.
 
I leave mine open but I use the boat year round.
I am on it every single weekend.

I don't need to go into the engine room as much nowadays. I fixed everything just the way I want it. I am out of things to work on. Everything works perfectly.

For years My mate and I always had a system in progress. From electrical to plumbing. Hydraulics, rudder and steering.you name it. It's all done.
Just changed all the hoses and belts in April.
Doing a little fiberglass repair now but I am doing that in rout to destination.

I will admit I still have a few gremlins on board.
Fine tuning tinkering and fiddling with things aboard is what makes boating a joy to me.

I really do need to work the valve once in a while.
 

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No, live only 15 minutes from the Marina. Hopefully the night security would notice the boot stripe sinking and call me. They call me about everything else, loose canvas, fenders crushing, left something on the dock. but I suppose they would miss that one until the boat capsized. lol

I should get in the habit of doing that when out of town, probably a good idea??

Larry B
 
I start the engine from the engine room, so I can see hear and feel what is going on, so its no big deal to open/close the thru hulls. When we leave for more than a couple days, I also close the thru hulls above the water line except for the bilge pumps.

If/when we do not live on the boat I plan on installing a alarm system like the Boat Nanny http://www.theboatnanny.com/index.html That will call 3 numbers if something is wrong on the boat.:thumb:
 
Phil Fill said:
I start the engine from the engine room, so I can see hear and feel what is going on, so its no big deal to open/close the thru hulls. When we leave for more than a couple days, I also close the thru hulls above the water line except for the bilge pumps.

If/when we do not live on the boat I plan on installing a alarm system like the Boat Nanny http://www.theboatnanny.com/index.html That will call 3 numbers if something is wrong on the boat.:thumb:
Click to expand...

I have an alarm system that I use on my boat, similar to the boat nanny.

The piece of mind that knowing you"'ll get a email and text if anything goes Amis on your boat is invaluable
 
No, I have never heard of a cared for boat sinking due to open Seacocks...... and I am also a heavily insured individual. Helps me sleep better at night.
 
I close the engine sea cock when I go home. No trouble remembering to open it since it is part of my routine arrival procedure. It is an older boat and I do not really know the condition of the bits and pieces yet.
 
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